The Yule Ball
by Cute-Cookie
Summary: Hermione leaned her head against Viktor's shoulder, as they slowly danced. But behind him was Ron Weasley. Their eyes met.. and in that moment 1000 words were silently whispered. Regret, love and pain was shared. It was too late to go back. OneShot. RR.


**I don't have any faith at all in my angst writing skills. Mainly cause this is my first. So imagine in your mind: Hermione slow dancing with Krum, staring over his shoulder at Ron. I just copied that off the summary. Yup, I'm trying to save my arse with your imagination, not my writing :P Also, this is a slight AU. Enough of my ramblings. READ**!

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The Weird Sisters struck up a slow mournful tune and the other champion and their partners got up, Harry tripping over his own robes. Hermione smiled as she saw this, glad to know that despite being in the centre of attention, they were still allowed to make mistakes. 

Mistakes. Had it been a mistake to say 'yes' to Viktor? Or did the real mistake lie in believing that for four years _he _actually cared for her? She thought she saw it sometimes when they were together, solving mistakes or just laughing at jokes. But later those nights, she would lie awake and stare up at her moonlit ceiling thinking. Why was it so difficult? Why couldn't she just know how he felt?

"Herm-own-ninny?" Viktor broke through her thoughts as he held out his hand. "Ve're meant to dance." He smiled reassuringly at her. Hermione smiled back.

"Oh, right! Sorry… I was just lost in the moment there," she glanced up and took his hand. He led her onto the brightly lit dance floor and gently pulled her body close to his. They danced slowly on the spot, aware enough to feel the others heart beating quickly, dazed enough to think that they were deep asleep in a wonderful dream.

Hermione felt so safe with Viktor. He gave off an aura of comfort. Of security. He was the first guy to ever tell her he cared for her and wanted to be 'more than just friends'. When he had finally mustered up the courage to ask her to the ball, she had looked into his eyes and seen… longing. And she had loved him for that.

Hermione looked into Viktor's eyes just as The Weird Sisters added the cello to the music. The slow, scratchy sound made her want to cry. Viktor, who was looking back at her, seemed to sense this. She felt his body stiffen and his throat swallow.

_Oh no… no…_she thought to herself. Raising her head, she gave him a swift kiss on the lips. He smiled at her and then they lost themselves in the music, leaning against each other. 

When Hermione had walked into the entrance hall earlier that night, everybody had turned around to see who Krum's date would be. There were jealous faces and there were disbelieving faces. Some, like Harry, simply glanced at her and then looked away, apparently not recognising her. But Ron had. His eyes had widened and his jaw had dropped. He was literally lost for words. But his eyes showed what was going through his mind, what his emotions were. They were stunned… and Hermione could see the love, hurt and betrayal in them. She had been shocked to see that, but then quickly regained her composure. He was _NOT _going to ruin her night. She had prepared so much for her date and Ron was not going to get in the way. Hoisting a smile onto her face, she had pulled Viktor towards the other champions.

The present moment Hermione was in her own world, her thoughts whirling around her. In her heels she came up to around the same height as Viktor. Leaning her head against his chest, she was able to see everything over his shoulder. And then she caught sight of him.

Ron was sitting there at a table in the corner. Every now and then his partner Padma would send an impatient glower in his direction. He wasn't paying any attention to her; his sole intent seemed to be in glaring at the ground. Hermione saw Padma say something angrily and storm off. He didn't even turn his head. The only sign of recognition was his knuckles turning even whiter against the butterbeer bottle he was holding. Then suddenly he looked up. Their eyes met. His face darkened.

There were other couples on the floor now, occasionally brushing past Hermione and Viktor with mumbled apologies. She didn't even register them because for the next few minutes that the song lasted, she was gazing into the eyes of Ron Weasley, who was looking back. The love, hurt and betrayal was still there. But now there was another emotion… Regret. A lot of it.

"_Why_?" His eyes seemed to say. "_Why him? Of all people… Why him?_"

"_Because he's not afraid to tell me what he feels. He's not ashamed_." She silently communicated back. "_He didn't wait until it was too late. He cares for me_."

"_I do care for you_."

"_You're just jealous. You don't care for me… you just want me as your property_."

"_No… I'd never do that. I want you. Just you_."

"_Bullshit… you never gave a damn about me_."

"_How can you say that? How can you do this with him?_"

The tears were silently flowing now, spilling out of her dark brown eyes, but the message was still crystal clear:

"_BECAUSE HES NOT YOU_!"

The song finished on a final, quavering note and Hermione felt as though her heart was ripped in two. Tearing herself away from Viktor, she let out a broken sob and ran past startled couples and past the doors to the Great Hall.

"Hermione!" she heard Harry call out in a shocked voice behind her. She didn't stop.

She couldn't take it anymore! WHY did he have to make her feel bad for EVERYTHING? This should have been one of the happiest moments of her teenage years but _he _had gone and wrecked it for her. And now, thanks to him Viktor would think she hated him. Everything ruined. Everything. Over a 'friend'.

She hurried up the marble staircase, dress whipping around her ankles, face tearstained, not stopping until she was safe in the Gryffindor Common Room, sitting in an armchair next to the fire. All the other third years and under had long since gone to bed – it was almost midnight.

"Get a grip on yourself, Hermione" she told herself out loud. "You're sensible enough to not screw up over some boy. He's not even that great. Just a… Just someone. No one. "

She kept telling herself that, over and over for the next half hour. Her breathing became more regular, and her mind relaxed. She leaned her head against the chair and tuned out, eyes fluttering shut.

Hermione heard the sounds of other people come in through the portrait hole not long after. She slouched down even further in her chair, keen to not be questioned on the scene she had created. She heard a few people mention her name and wondering where she was, but then… silence. They had gone up to their dormitories.

Hermione slowly raised herself up off the chair, biting her lip nervously.

"So what was that about?" her head whipped around at Ron's question. He had stayed silently behind her, waiting for everyone else to leave before surprising her.

"What was that about? _What was that about?_" Hermione repeated incredulously. She had made a fool of herself in front of everyone for some prick who had no idea what he had done! Her grief rapidly gave way to anger as she glared daggers at him. "What the hell do you think that was about?!"

"What do you think you were playing at, going with Krum? How stupid are you?!" Ron snapped at her.

Was THAT what was going through his head as they danced? Not that it was her dancing, but that it was Viktor dancing? Hermiones cheeks burned and she look like she was going to explode.

"Who I date is none of your goddamn business, Ron! So just SHUT UP!"

"No! He's from Durmstrang! He's competing against Harry! You're a traitorous bitch!"

Hermione's mouth fell open at his insult. "At least I'm not the one begging him for autographs! At least I don't have a model of him up in my room like some obsessed freak!"

Ron's eyes flashed angrily at her reasoning. "No, you're just the one snogging him in pub-"

"You don't care about that!" Hermione shouted back. "You're only mad at me because I'm going out with someone who's not you! It doesn't matter that he's from Durmstrang, The only thing that matters to you is that it wasn't you up there dancing with me!"

Ron turned beetroot at her words. "You're talking rubbish!"

The portrait hole banged open again, and Harry came into the room. Neither of them payed any attention to him.

"Well, if you don't like it, you know what the solution is, don't you?" yelled Hermione; her hair was coming down out of it's elegant bun now, and her face was screwed up in anger.

"Oh yeah?" Ron yelled back. "What's that?"

"Next time there's a ball, ask me before someone else does, and not as a last resort!"

Ron mouthed soundlessly like a goldfish out of water as Hermione turned on her heel and stormed up the girls' staircase to bed.

She didn't want morning to come. She was already feeling sick at the thought of all the people she had to face. The nosy ones who just wanted to jump on the bandwagon, find out what had happened. Viktor… she had probably broken his heart. Harry… he was caught in the middle of _another_ one of Ron and hers arguments. And Ron… she never wanted to see his freckled face again!

Hermione found her dormitory empty and breathed a sigh of relief. She didn't even have the strength to change, she just collapsed straight onto her bed and pulled the blankets around her.

The moon was reflecting off specks in the glass window, casting a glittering image on the ceiling. She watched it twinkle for while, then slowly closed her eyes. It had been a long night. And it was going to be a long tomorrow. One last thought went through her exhausted mind before sleep overcame her…

_If this was love, why did it have to be so difficult?_

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**Oo-er!! A review button!! Down there!! Click it :) Even if you say 'it was alright, read better though' or 'absolute trash, delete'. Thanks for bothering to get down to here :P**


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